Etihad Airways’ President and Chief Executive Officer James Hogan gave the opening address to more than 1,200 delegates attending the World Cargo Alliance (WCA) Conference taking place at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre between March 10 and 13.

Mr Hogan
spoke in depth about changes in the global cargo industry and how the Etihad
Airways Partner alliance increases the airline’s strength and depth in cargo
operations. By combining aircraft fleets and networks, Etihad Cargo is
recognised as the fifth largest cargo operator in the world by working in close
harmony with Jet Airways Cargo, airberlin Cargo, Air Serbia, Alitalia and Air
Seychelles Cargo.

The Etihad
Cargo division of Etihad Airways generates over US $1 billion in annual
revenues and is one of the world’s most successful air cargo operations. It accounted for 88 per cent of cargo
imports, exports and transfers at Abu Dhabi International Airport in 2015, a
year in which it carried 592,090 tonnes of freight and mail, up four per cent
on 2014.

Etihad
Cargo currently operates a freighter fleet of four Boeing 777F, three Boeing
747s, and four Airbus A330s. An additional Boeing 777 freighter is due to
arrive this month with a further Airbus A330 freighter scheduled to arrive in
2017.

Mr Hogan
spoke about how the Middle East region continues to outperform global growth
rates for cargo and plays an increasingly important role in the flow of world
trade and goods, with its geographical importance enhanced as traffic shifts
from traditional and established markets to emerging commercial centres in the
Middle East, Asia, South America and Africa.

He said: “Our hub of, Abu Dhabi is at the crossroads
of the world, and as a combination carrier, Etihad Airways is perfectly
positioned to capitalise on the growing passenger traffic, and the increasing
volumes of cargo and goods transported between expanding and emerging markets.”

Etihad
Cargo offers maindeck and bellyhold services and an extended reach across a
network of passenger and cargo-only destinations.

“Etihad
Cargo has grown into a billion dollar business and represents a significant
part of our business by focussing on dedicated services and innovative products
to provide a winning customer proposition. By working with our partners, we
will continue to maximise the profitability of each carrier by combining
resources, networks and capabilities for the benefit of all of our customers,”
said Mr Hogan.

Partnerships
with other freighter operators, including Atlas Air and Avianca, provide strong
support to the main operation, and the division is continuing to explore
opportunities for co-operation with like-minded cargo operators. The
airline currently operates to 14 freighter-only destinations that include
Bogotá, Brazzaville, Chittagong, Djibouti, Dubai World Central, Eldoret, Guangzhou,
Hanoi, Houston, Sharjah and Tbilisi.